Hank Garner, a guy who describes himself as “just a fat man trying to get to the truth” has created a new blog titled My Low-Carb Journey. Like Jimmy Moore, he’s making podcasts part of his offerings. And wouldn’t you know it, his first podcast was with The Man himself, Jimmy Moore.

I don’t recall who first requested the Big Fat Fiasco speech on DVD, but bless you. I uploaded the speech to YouTube as a way of saying thanks to the many loyal readers who wished me well and said they’d like to see it. I certainly didn’t expect there’d be a market for a DVD version of a speech that was available online for free.

Boy, was I wrong. Once I edited and authored the DVD and put up an order page, we were swamped. I burned DVDs nonstop for days and ended up shipping copies to the U.S., Australia, New Zealand, Britain, Scotland, Canada, Sweden, Belgium, Israel and Afghanistan. We still get orders trickling in every day.

So thank you all for your support… honestly, you blew me away.

Fat Head Direct

Now that we’re in habit of processing DVD orders, we asked our U.S. distributor if they had any issues with us selling Fat Head DVDs directly from the blog site. They said no problem — the only catch is that we can only ship their DVD to U.S. addresses. You can still buy from Amazon, of course, but you’ll notice we’ve changed the sidebar link from Amazon to a direct-order page. Since we do a little better financially without Amazon taking a cut, we’re making the direct-order price $15.00 with shipping included.

Fat Head overseas version

We’ve given up on waiting for our overseas distributor to make DVD deals outside the U.S. They’ve managed to sell the TV rights in several countries, but no DVD rights. For more than a year, I’ve been receiving emails from fans in other countries asking where they can buy a DVD that isn’t region-restricted for North America. I’ve had to tell them to be patient, our distributor is working on it. I’ve even heard from people who confessed to downloading an illegal copy and wondered how they could pay me for it.

Well, enough waiting already. We’re looking into other options to replicate and distribute the film overseas, and we should have the details worked out soon. There won’t be any foreign-language audio tracks or subtitles, but the DVD won’t be region-restricted either.

As a way of saying thanks to fans overseas who order the non-U.S. DVD when it’s ready, I plan to include the Big Fat Fiasco speech as a bonus track. Like the U.S. DVD, it will also include a bonus track of extra interview footage with the people you saw in the film.

Birthday weekend

Hard to believe, but I’ll turn 52 on Sunday. If only I’d known 30 years ago what I know now about diet and health, I could’ve saved myself a lot of frustration. I might have even kept a full head of hair, according to a new book I’m reading on baldness and nutrition.

But all’s well that ends well. I have a fabulous wife and two daughters I adore (one of whom had her own hair disaster last week, as described on my other blog), I live in a charming town, I work at home, I’m back to writing for print after decades away from it, I correspond with some brilliant doctors and researchers, and I thoroughly enjoy the back-and-forth comments with readers. Life is good. Here’s to 52 more.

Which book are you referring to that talks about baldness and nutrition? I’m interested.

It’s an eBook I received from Danny Roddy at Carnivore Health. I’m just getting started, but my first impression is that it’s very well written and contains a lot of good nutrition info, whether you’re balding or not.

Tom, you might go take a look at Lulu.com — they ship DVDs overseas and are pretty reasonable, as I remember. I worked (as an editor and layout tech) for a guy who was reprinting antique books through Lulu, and they did a nice job with books.

Happy Birthday Tom..may you live to 53..one year at a time..huh.
As you know, what you know now was not on the radar 30yrs ago. You and your followers (incuding me) have entered the ‘cutting edge’ and refuse nonsense from here to the grave.
Good health and good luck.

Now that I know what I know, 52 more years isn’t out of the question. My great-grandfather lived to 101.

Hi Tom – HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! I was just saying to my partner that of all the people I read, you are the one who I believe. I love your mathematical approach to statistics and you reasoned approach to all the rubbish we are served up.

One person who I remembered today from years ago (who was responsible for totally messing up my eating) was Susan Powter. Have you heard ofher? google her if not. Her whole purpose in life is to tell people to eat carbs and not fat. I thought that after years she would have gone away but no, she has a new book out!

Anyway, well done with the DVDs and your wonderful family – you must have done something right to get such a lovely bunch of women around you 🙂

Ahhh, yes, Susan Powter. The “Stop the Insanity” woman. I made the mistake of believing her too. Didn’t last long, since I felt awful and couldn’t lose weight following her approach.

Now this simply cannot be true, about people paying you… don’t you know Hollywood says people just won’t pay for what they can get for free and that they are loosing billions upon billions on downloaders who STEAL their stuff? Which forces them, reluctantly of-course, to sway governments all over the globe to completely ignore all pretense of democracy and make brand new laws (quite often in secret) turning some 70% the country into criminals who get judged more harshly than bankrobers, rapists and actual Somalian pirates? 😉 Funny how the movie theaters are still just as full as they were 20 years ago..

Anyway, Happy Birthday 🙂 yours is one of the best blogs out there and your habit of commenting 99% of all entries makes you unique, kudos to you Tom 🙂

Of course, I don’t approve of people illegally downloading movies, but honestly, when Fat Head isn’t even available overseas and people want to see it, who can blame them? I just hope the legal version is as popular.

Tom,
Happy Birthday and keep spreading the good word.
Thank you for everything you do.
Life is NOT meant to be a struggle…eventhough CW likes us to believe that.
Very happy you are enjoyig every day the way we are supposed to.
Have a wonderful weekend.

Been following your blog for a while. I’m a Doctor of Oriental Medicine and encourage a low-carb (low grain) diet as part of my work with patients. I recommend your film to them all. I was thinking (yesterday, as a matter of fact) that it would be nice to be able to give the movie to my patients I could get it cheaper. I was happy to see your offering of only $15 today. That is awesome. Keep up the good work and Happy Birthday.

Happy birthday! I’m really looking forward to the overseas version of the DVD and quite happy not to give money to Amazon (but if anyone wants to click on the affiliate links on MY blog they are more than welcome – LOL)

Happy Birthday, d00d. Having been 52 for a month or so myself, I can tell you it doesn’t bother me. Except for that part about, you know, being closer to dying, I’m thoroughly enjoying being middle aged.

My only complaint (other than being closer to dying) is my bum knee. The knee feels 52; the rest of me feels 30-ish.

I wouldn’t have guessed you’re in your 50s. Must be all that good natural fat keeping the skin healthy.

I purchased your DVD from Amazon last year and it works just fine in New Zealand. I play BBC DVD’s from the UK as well with no problem. Some players sold here seem to be multi-regional, which is good 🙂

I’ve heard from a few people who didn’t know about region coding and can’t play the DVD. I’ll be glad when it’s not an issue anymore.

Happy Birthday Tom! I bought the Fat Head DVD from Amazon, I live in the UK but I also have a multi-region DVD player, I’ve shown your video to family and friends. When I tell them it’s region 1 they are disappointed. Now I have the good news that it will be region free yipee. So more fully deserved sales for you and the message will be getting a wider audence.

Happy birthday Tom! 52 is Spring chicken territory, to me. I didn’t discover low carb/paleo/primal etc until I was sixty and I reckon “going primal” has given me a new lease of life. After a lifetime of high-carb, low-fat diets and two decades on statins (faithfully following doctor’s orders and getting fatter and sicker) I reckon my health has been well and truly munted, as we say in NZ. But after two years following a primal diet (and ditching the statins!) I feel (and look!) 10 years younger. Love your blog, and I’ll be buying multiple copies of your DVD when it becomes multi-regional to give to family and friends. Thanks for all you do to spread the word.

I just recommended Fat Head to a NetFlix subscriber friend who told be that it is no longer available from there. It is listed, but you can only “save” it.

Since NetFlix is where I got it from myself, I guess I’ll have to order one for myself to lend to my friend. I probable shouldn’t have it delivered to work since I work for amazon. (Don’t tell anyone if you get an order from me. 🙂

Jon

Thanks for the heads-up. I think I have the link fixed.

I’ve asked the U.S. distributor to look into what’s up with Netflix, but they haven’t gotten back to me. The goods news is, another company is apparently about to put Fat Head on Hulu and Netflix instant play. I’ll let everyone know when that happens.

Happy Birthday Tom! You look fabulous for 52! Good luck with the DVD distribution for Fat Head. I’m lucky I live in the US and was able to be one of the “early adopters” of Fat Head, which I ordered the very day I first read about it on Dr. Mike Eades’s blog.

Happy 52nd birthday! I’d like to come up with something clever to say, but this early in the morning nothing clever is possible apparently. Sounds like a good life being lived. Wish you great success in achieving 52 more.

A blog piece about hair growth and healthy eating would be of great interest to many I suspect. My guess is it probably would make for a popular article.

PS – I once had the following test question from a genetics professor – “One quarter of men have the extremely sexy and highly desirable trait of baldness. Three quarters are hairy mutants. What type of inheritance pattern does this represent?”

Happy Birthday from someone coming up on 52 herself. I was just thinking the same thing the other day – how I wish I had known at 20 what I know now. At least my daughter has benefitted from my hard-earned knowledge at an earlier age. My birthday gift to you and me is to order the DVD right now 😉

Happy Birthday, Tom! I can’t remember how I originally found out about Fat Head, but I remember it was before it was released. I have at least 4 copies that I’ve bought and distributed to others, and I plan to get a few more copies. You explain complicated things in a simple, amusing way, and I hope your work convinces some of my family members (and a few of the students I teach) to ignore Conventional Wisdom and use their functioning brains. Thank you.

If you heard about Fat Head before the release, it was probably from Jimmy Moore or Dr. Mike Eades, both of whom talked it up on their blogs. Thank you for the birthday wishes and for being a multi-customer.

I’ll definately buy your fat head dvd and your big fat fiasco speach Tom. Delivery to Sydney Australia should I order through the fat head website? Watched your speach online and you did an excellent job so well done! Originally saw your fat head movie on tv in New Zealand and now i find myself checking your web page most days waiting for your next article.

I particularly enjoy reading your debates you have online with PC nutritionists… very funny! your humour backed with scientific evidence makes for a very entertaining debate. Just a shame most people you debate with end up so angry 😉

Yes, we’ll take orders for the overseas release through the website. We’ve got our replicator/fulfillment house selected, and should be ready to roll in about two weeks.

Just some anecdotal evidence on the baldness thing. Since I went fully primal/paleo eating and quit shampooing my hair has actually started to grow back into my previously bare widow’s peak areas. It’s amazing! It’s actually filling back in. And I’m 52 y/o. Plus the rest of my hair seems to be denser and thicker.
I thought I was doomed to creeping baldness for the rest of my life.

Interesting. My balding seems to have at least slowed or perhaps stopped, but I’m not getting any back so far.

distributors are a joke. not suggesting you do this, but something i would do is hire someone from freelancer.com to subtitle the dvds for specific languages, DvdDecryptor it to region-free, and have someone “anonymously” sell it on ioffer.com which ships worldwide.

Great movie!
But I really think subtitles are a must for the International version! I think a lot of people in Europe would buy it if subtitles on their languages included, and I don’t think would be much expensive to make them.

Subtitles are supposed to be created by individual distributors in each territory. We don’t have the resources to get them done for all the different languages.

I’ve seen your movie a few times already and I find it great.
However I’m one of the few fluent enough persons in Spain that can understand it without subtitles.
If you don’t have the resources to create subtitles for each language, would it be possible to have them at least in English? They really help a lot in understanding what the characters are saying.

I’d like to do that eventually. Usually it’s up to the distributors in each region.

The film follows Donal – a lean, fit, seemingly healthy 41 year old man – on a quest to hack his genes and drop dead healthy by avoiding the heart disease and diabetes that has afflicted his family.

Donal’s father Kevin, an Irish gaelic football star from the 1960s, won the first of 2 All Ireland Championships with the Down Senior Football Team in 1960 before the biggest crowd (94,000) ever seen at an Irish sporting event.

When Kevin suffered a heart attack later in life, family and friends were shocked. How does a lean, fit and seemingly healthy man – who has sailed through cardiac stress tests – suddenly fall victim to heart disease?